Saudi Diplomat Not Expelled from Tehran, Says Informed Official

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An informed official with the Iranian foreign ministry said Tuesday that a Saudi diplomat who killed an Iranian citizen in a driving accident had left Iran on September 27 at the end of his mission, and added that the diplomat was not expelled by the Iranian authorities.

The informed source added that the Saudi embassy also informed Iran's foreign ministry that the tenure of the diplomat involved in the accident had been expired.

He said that reports that the diplomat was expelled from Iran were baseless.

An Iranian lawmaker had earlier said that the Saudi diplomat responsible for the deadly drunk driving accident in Tehran had been expelled from Iran, and that compensation had been paid to the victims families.

A member of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Mehdi Davatgari had said on Tuesday that the Saudi diplomat was declared persona non grata and expelled 20 days ago and that the Saudi Embassy in Tehran had paid compensation to the victims families.

Davatgari also called on the Saudi judiciary to investigate the charges that the diplomat was drunk driving and had bottles of alcoholic beverages in his car when he had the fatal accident, and then to brief the Iranian officials on the results of their probe.

On March 18, an intoxicated Saudi diplomat killed an Iranian driver and injured a passer-by in a car accident in Tehran. The Saudi diplomat rammed his vehicle into the Iranian car before veering off the road, killing the Iranian driver on the spot. Four bottles of alcoholic beverages were found in the Saudi diplomat’s car.

The cause of the accident was overspeeding and driving under the influence of alcohol.